An Unexpected Affair by Elizabeth Lennox
Chapter 1
The miserable scent of fear and desperation was thick in the room. Evie Munroe stepped into the small, cramped space, tugging her ragged baseball cap lower over her eyes as she looked around for a chair.
Unfortunately, Evie hadn’t arrived early enough to snag a seat and the waiting room was only standing room now.
Didn’t matter, she thought with gritty determination as she walked over to the metal table and added her name to the sign in sheet. She could do this!
Moving back to a far corner of the room, she pulled the script out of her bag and pretended to do what all of the others were doing; looking over the audition lines. But instead of mentally going over the script one more time, she looked around, peering through the fake glasses she’d donned as a disguise, sizing up the competition.
Good grief, it had been a long time since she’d had to sit in a casting call room. Not since she’d been five years old had she endured the humiliation and desperation of an open casting call. Banishing those miserable memories, Evie tugged her ball cap lower, praying that her disguise was effective.
Two miserable, sweaty hours later, she heard, “Evelyn Munroe!”
Jumping to her feet, Evie grabbed her bag. “That’s me,” she said and nervously walked towards the tired woman who had been calling out names in approximate ten minute intervals. The receptionist had probably started out the day enthusiastically, but it was now five o’clock in the afternoon and she looked burned out and irritated with the repetitious task.
“This way,” the receptionist intoned without any inflection to her voice, leading Evie down the same hallway the poor woman had traveled about a hundred times already that day. She paused by a door, took a deep breath, then pushed open the door. “Evelyn Munroe,” she announced, then stepped back to allow Evie to enter the small room.
Evie nodded her thanks, but the woman had already pulled the door closed. Evie understood the poor woman’s expression. Too many people had come to Los Angeles with stars in their eyes only to realize the movie industry was well known for chewing people up and spitting them out.
Pushing the receptionist out of her mind, she took a deep breath as she turned to face the judges. Goodness, what was she doing?! Why was she here? Why was she putting herself through this horror?!
“Ready?” one of the men sitting behind a long folding table asked, seeming to be just as defeated and painfully bored as the receptionist.
“Read page six of the script,” a woman instructed flatly.
That’s when the third member of the panel glanced up.
Stunned, Evie stared. It couldn’t be! No way! Brock Severson?
“Whenever you are ready,” he prompted, obviously just as exhausted and uninterested as the others, but trying to be polite as he shifted on the plastic chair set up behind a cheap, faux-wood folding table.
No, it couldn’t be. Brock Severson was a former actor who had stepped behind the camera! As a producer and director, he was one of the most sought after directors in the industry!
“Ms…” the female judge glanced down at the name on the paper impatiently, “Munroe, we don’t have time for gawking. Either read the lines or leave so we can bring in the next person.”
Right! Casting call! Movie of a lifetime! This was her chance to get away from the ridiculous sitcoms and romantic comedies…the only roles she’d been offered. This was her break! This was her opportunity to prove that she was more than just a pretty face and perky boobs!
“Right!” She dug into her bag that was, thankfully, still hanging on her shoulder. She pulled out a pair of spike heels. Part of her character, she’d thought when she’d read the script.
Walking over to the wall, she put the shoes down, placing them carefully so that she could easily slip them on later, dumped her bag, and turned, tugging her ball cap into place.
Moving back to the middle of the open space, she dropped the script on the floor. Breathed in. Closed her eyes and…heard an impatient sigh from one of the judges as she slowly let the breath out. When she opened her eyes again, she was centered. She was in character. Correction, she WAS Lucy Decroix!
Stalking across the room, she led with her shoulders, trying to convey her eagerness. “Senator, you know me. You know what I can do!”
Someone from the table supplied the next line. “Look, I know that you’re John Decroix’s daughter, but that doesn’t mean…!”
“Forget my father!” Evie snapped, impatiently slicing through the air with one hand. “I’m the one that can get this job done. If you don’t think so, then tell me that.” She scowled at the blank wall, pretending that her counterpart was there instead. “But don’t dismiss me simply because of who my father is.”
There was a long silence, then someone gave the next line. “You’re just a girl.”
Evie defiantly lifted her chin, her lips pressed together into a thin line of indignation. “So, which is it, Senator? Are you arguing that I can’t get the job done because of my father’s reputation? Or because I have breasts?”
There was a long pause, because she’d changed the words. The actual line was “…because I’m female.” But Evie thought her version was more powerful.
“It doesn’t matter.”
Relief surged through her. They weren’t going to kick her out for changing the line. Not yet, at least. “Neither issue is relevant. Dismissing me for either reason means you’re an idiot. You know I can get the job done and you’re just being a sexist pig.”
There was a moment of silence and Evie went for broke. Turning, she stared at the female judge through the lightly tinted glasses. “Should I go on to the next scene?”
The three judges stared at her and Evie could feel it. They were interested! She knew it! She’d nailed it! This role was perfect for her and she’d practiced this scene a zillion times!
Still, she fought not to glance at the tall man with his legs stretched out in front of him. Long legs, she thought, seeing them out of the corner of her eye.
“Sure. Why not?”
She nodded curtly. Turning, Evie hurried over to the spike heels and slipped her sneakers off, pushing her feet into the pumps. She took another moment to re-center her mind, then casually strolled into a new position, and nodded to the line reader.
“Hey there, pretty lady. What brings you to this bar?”
Evie’s stern expression changed. Her features softened and she pulled her glasses off. “Why, Senator,” her lips curled upwards as she added a slight southern accent, her body language shifting to one of unspoken sexual innuendo. “I wasn’t expecting to see you tonight.” Leading with her hips this time, she walked over to the wall and, with a coy glance over her shoulder, toed off her shoes, allowing her lashes to lower ever so slightly as she pulled her toe back suggestively. “I would have gotten here a lot sooner if I’d known you were here.”
“Does your daddy know that you’re here?”
Evie giggled girlishly. “Of course my daddy doesn’t know I’m here,” she whispered, leaning forward seductively. “He’d probably spank me if he knew!” That was another line she’d added. Evie knew that adding lines to a casting call wasn’t just bad. It was pretty much forbidden. But she didn’t care. The scripted lines needed help and she knew how they should have been written! “Maybe you could fill in for my daddy,” she purred, letting her tongue dart out to wet her lips.
Brock stared, his heart pounding in his chest. This was it! This woman was who they’d been waiting for! Damn, just watching her, seeing the small changes in her body language and the subtle ways that she shifted her head, angling it just slightly, teasing, her silver eyes seeming to sparkle as she went through the lines.
She was perfect! Damn it, they’d been doing these damned casting calls for almost a week and none of the people who had read so far had even come close! But this woman…she was brilliant! She wasn’t just playing the part “right”. She WAS the part! Somehow, this beautiful woman had become ‘Lucy’!
“Go to scene three!” he ordered, standing up and moving around the table.
Instantly, her body language shifted again. Her shoulders pulled back and her hand reached out, as if sliding along an imaginary table. “I told you not to do it,” she whispered throatily. The woman walked with her hips first. Sauntering. But no, that wasn’t exactly right. Her movements were more…more of a slither. Yes, that was right. This stunningly beautiful woman literally slithered across the audition space and her voice dripped with triumph! “But you ignored me, didn’t you?” She leaned forward. “They all do,” she whispered, as if saying the words into the man’s ear as he lay on the table. “And they all…die.”
The slight hesitation before she said that last word was exactly right. Exactly the way he had pictured the scene…but it was more. So much more when this woman said it!
“Cut!” Brock snapped. Turning away, stood up, tossing the script down onto the folding table. “Thank you.”
The brunette frowned, but he ignored her as he settled his hands on his hips, watching her startled expression. The “Thank you” was movie industry speak for “Don’t call us, we’ll call you.”
Still, the woman hesitated, eyeing the other two before turning to glare up at him. Without any expression, he waited for her to leave. It took another heartbeat, but finally, she turned and, with a furious kick, the heels came off. She stuffed the heels into her bag while, at the same time, stuffing her feet into her sneakers. Then she rushed out of the room.
There was a stunned silence after the brunette’s angry departure.
“What the hell are you doing?” Jason, the associate producer, demanded. “She was perfect for Lucy and you just…let her leave?”
Brock completely agreed with Jason. For a long moment he continued to watch the closed door, then he turned on his heel and walked to the windows, staring through the hazy glass.
Yes, the woman had been perfect. But…there was something about her…something he couldn’t quite put his finger on. “Who is she?” he asked. He watched through the window as the woman angrily exited the building. They were on the second story of a warehouse-like area, well off the beaten path of the regular studio buildings.
She was furious, he thought. Furious and…beautiful! Damn, too beautiful! Her long, dark hair had been pulled tightly back, most of it hidden underneath that ragged ball cap. And those eyes! Good grief, they’d been a pure, molten silver. Full lips, petite but voluptuous body, and…who the hell is she? It was infuriating to have to grope for a memory that wouldn’t come.
“She’s perfect, Brock,” Nancy Elderman declared firmly. As the movie’s director, Brock gave Nancy’s opinion a lot of weight. Still, as producer, he had the final say. That wasn’t always the case in Hollywood, but since he’d written the script and was the producer, as well as the major financial backer, his word was pretty much the final say in everything.
“Who is she?” he repeated, angry now because he hated mysteries.
He heard papers shuffle behind him, but Brock kept his eyes on the woman as she flung her bag into her car. Not a horrible car, he mused. Better than what a starving actor would be able to afford though. Another piece of the mystery, he thought.
“She put her name down as Evelyn Munroe,” Nancy announced, wrinkles appearing between her eye brows, as if she were thinking hard. “You’re right, Brock. That name sounds vaguely familiar.”
Jason huffed impatiently, tossing his own script onto the table as he huffed with frustration. “Does it matter? She’s perfect for the part. Hell, she’s better than perfect! She improved on a script that I thought was perfect before!”
Jason had a point, but still…this was Brock’s baby and he never settled. Ever!
Realizing he wasn’t going to be able to think of anything else until he solved this mystery, he turned and hurried out the door. “Keep going with the auditions. If anyone comes slightly close to this Munroe woman, then set her up with a second audition and I’ll evaluate her later.”
He hurried down the back stairway so that he could reach the parking lot faster. When he got there, he glanced over at the woman’s vehicle. It was a non-descript hatchback that looked like about ten million other cars on the road. He stepped into his black Land Rover and peeled out of the parking lot after the hatchback. At the moment, he had no idea what he was doing. She was so damn perfect for the role, but he knew that there was something about her, something that sent off warning bells in his brain.
A half hour later, the mystery was solved. The woman pulled into a secluded driveway. He’d never been to this particular house, but since his own house was only about a mile away, he knew who lived here. He knew everyone that lived on this street. In fact, he knew everyone who lived in this neighborhood. The houses on this street were set on five acre lots, which meant that there were only ten houses on this street and five streets in the neighborhood. Even more telling, this was a gated community. Everyone who purchased a house here had to be pre-approved by the neighbors. The other residents were all high profile and all had signed the privacy and approval agreement. Because each of the homeowners were extremely private people who didn’t want the paparazzi to invade their homes.
Evie Munroe! Damn it!
Turning around, he considered returning to the auditions and finding someone else. Unfortunately, deep down, Brock knew that he wouldn’t find another actor who could play the part better. Evie Munroe had nailed it. Hell, she’d enhanced it! Evie Munroe had added nuances to the character that he hadn’t even considered!
But Evie Munroe had a reputation. A bad one! She was a raging alcoholic and would try just about any drug offered to her. There’d been speculation that she’d entered a rehab facility…and never come out again because her drug addiction was so severe.
Okay, Brock didn’t know that for certain. Those were just rumors. But Evie Munroe had disappeared from Hollywood eight years ago. Hell, some of the rumors had speculated that she’d died. Someone had even whispered that she’d been murdered. That had been a particularly ridiculous rumor, since there would have been press coverage of a famous, beautiful actress killed off for whatever reason. Even if Evie had overdosed, the press would have been all over the story like flies on a pile of…!
Sighing, he rubbed the back of his neck. Evie Munroe. She was even more beautiful in person. And he still couldn’t get away from the fact that she was absolutely perfect for the role of Lucy.
So, what was he going to do about it?
